CHINA'S NUMBER ONE indigenous sporting goods brand by market share, Anta Sports, has extended its partnership agreement with the Chinese Olympic Committee (COC) to 2016.
The deal will cover the four-year Olympic cycle, which includes Sochi 2014, Rio 2016, the 2013 Asian Games in Nanjing, China and the 2014 Youth Olympic Games, also in Nanjing.
Anta has held the COC’s sportswear partner role since 2009 when the Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed company signed for four years covering Vancouver 2010, the Guangzhou Asian Games 2010 and London 2012 in a deal reportedly worth between $60m and $70m.
No financial details were released on the new deal but it is likely to include only a modest uplift given less favourable economic conditions in the national market and pressure from western brands like Nike and adidas.
Chinese sports brands are feeling the pinch. In the first three quarters of 2012, rival brand Peak closed 1,067 outlets, while Li Ning and China Dongxiang together closed nearly 1,800 outlets in the first half of the year.
In comparison, Anta closed 110 outlets in the first half of 2012 and will hope that its Olympic credentials differentiate it further from the failing pack.
Anta’s sponsorship portfolio also includes personal deals with NBA stars Kevin Garnett and Luis Scola. Last year, however, Anta was toppled from its position as the exclusive sponsor of sportswear and equipment for the Chinese Basketball Association, held since 2004, by Li Ning.